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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. stock — goods
  3. degree — from a university
  4. dip — to sink
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. can — a tin
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. stock — shares
  10. last — finally
  11. can — a tin
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. cap — a hat
  15. cap — a lid
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. cap — of ice
  18. last — to go on
  19. can — to be able to
  20. saw — the tool
  21. degree — an amount
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. degree — temperature
  24. saw — the tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com